


rockin' rebel

by junyeonbug



Category: NINE PERCENT (Band), YHNEXT (Band), 偶像练习生 | Idol Producer (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Fluff, M/M, justin is aged up but that doesnt rly matter, this is pretty boring guys im sorry, will we ever get an angry wenjun, zyc/zzt is only a side ship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2018-06-18
Packaged: 2019-05-24 23:28:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14964269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/junyeonbug/pseuds/junyeonbug
Summary: Zeren has only ever seen Tom as his favourite vocalist and guitarist in the band he's been chasing for years. But when he finds himself all alone, desperate for help, he realises that Tom was there for him all along.





	rockin' rebel

**Author's Note:**

> insp: [here](https://twitter.com/biwenjunnn/status/1007493790578294784)
> 
> and for those of you who don't know:  
> wenjun is tom  
> zhengting is theo  
> justin is... justin

Deafening cheers from hot, sweaty bodies around Zeren fill his ears, and he pushed his way through the crowd to see Justin, Theo and Tom ascend the steps to the stage.   
  
The screams grew louder as the three band players station themselves in front of their respective instruments. Zeren cheered in a petite voice too, unaffected by the sharp, piercing sound of Tom patting the microphone to test it.   
  
"Good evening everyone," he spoke in a,soft voice, sending the crowd into a frenzy. "I hope all of you can enjoy our performance tonight and have fun."   
  
With that, he stepped away from the microphone to tune the electric guitar hanging from his neck. Giving Justin a single nod, the drummer hit his first beats and following that, music blasts from the speakers.   
  
Zeren's eyes are immediately drawn to the vocalist and the guitarist in the middle of the stage. His gentle image when addressing the audience was crushed when he aggressively strummed at his guitar and passionately projected his strong vocals into the microphone.   
  
Not to mention how good he looked; Zeren focused on the way he was dressed and how his makeup was done that day. Heavy eye makeup, gelled-up hair, a rider jacket clad with numerous chains. Simply put it, Tom looked gorgeous.   
  
"THEO LOOKS AMAZING TODAY," Yanchen had to practically scream into Zeren's ear to make his voice audible, "HE HAS CURLY HAIR!"   
  
Zeren raised his eyebrows at his friend who was sending flying kisses to the keyboardist, "have you seen Tom? That's some top class visuals right there."   
  
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" Yanchen stuck his ear in front of Zeren's mouth, "I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER HOW LOUD THEO'S VISUALS ARE."   
  
Zeren sighed and shoved his friend's face out of the way to resume his ogling at Tom. Sweat was dripping down the guitarist's cheeks by now; when he flicked his head to the side, beads of sweat flew from his fringe and glimmered in the spotlights.   
  
Zeren's breath hitched. That was beautiful.   
  
The first song ended and the audience burst into cheers and whistles. Zeren's more focused on how hot Tom's adam apple bobbed up and down as he chugged half a bottle of water in one go.   
  
The same process repeated for the other five songs that the band performed that night. Yanchen screaming at how handsome Theo looks, Zeren more interested in Tom's performance, until their mini concert ended and the crowd started to disperse.   
  
"That was amazing," Yanchen's sweaty as hell but still smiling brightly, "they played so well today and they all looked flaming hot! Their stylist deserves a raise."   
  
Zeren nodded in agreement, taking a seat in front of the bar together with Yanchen. Yanchen continued grinning at his friend's response: even though Zeren might not seem like he was even listening to him, he knew the boy was just bad at expressing himself.   
  
"I saw that they won't be performing here next week, they're going to a club pretty far from here," Zeren checked his phone, "one hour by bus. You coming?"   
  
Yanchen pouted with his cheeks full of sprite. "I have night duty next week, even if they're performing here, I can't make it."   
  
"Okay, I hope I don't get lost and can find my way back," the smaller boy sighed worriedly, staring at the bottom of his empty cup.   
  
"If anything happens, just give me a ring! I'll come save you wherever you are," Yanchen slapped his back, "seriously, why do they have to go so far? Is it some special event? Damn it, I'll be missing it then, what if they're performing some songs for the first time?"   
  
Zeren tuned Yanchen's babbling out as he saw Tom load his electric guitar into a van just outside the club. He's changed out of his stage clothes into a plain black tee, making his muscles visible as he loaded his bandmates' instruments in.   
  
As if he could feel someone watching his back, Tom turned around and flashed Zeren a milisecond smile before resuming his labour.   
  
Call it forshadowing or some sixth sense, but at that instant, Zeren was almost certain that this insignificant smile was the signal to the start of everything.

 

* * *

 

Without Yanchen, everything suddenly became so scary.   
  
Zeren finally made it to the venue after missing his stop twice and spending an hour walking around aimlessly. If not for following the group of girls he recognised at many of their mini concerts, Zeren would probably have never made it.   
  
He arrived an hour before the concert started, giving him some time to grab a drink at the bar. He settled for a simple sparkling orange juice and seated himself at the bar, pulling out his phone to text Yanchen that he arrived safely.   
  
After Yanchen decided to call him and ask him how everything was going, Zeren realised his drink was still untouched but the concert would be beginning in a few minutes. Downing the entire cup in one shot, he made his way to the stage to get himself a good spot.   
  
That's when he realised that something was not right.   
  
His vision was becoming increasingly blurry, and his head was starting to spin.   
  
The drink in his stomach tossed and turned around, threatening to hurl itself out.   
  
The three figures on stage suddenly became unidentifiable blobs of colour.   
  
The blinding lights, loud cheers and blaring music, which usually didn't bother him, made his head pound until it feels like his brain would explode any time-   
  
Zeren used his small frame as an advantage to manouver his way through the audience to the bathrooms, where he emptied the contents of his stomach into the toilet. Sitting up on the floor, he barely had a few seconds to take a few deep breaths before his vision turned completely black.   


* * *

  
  
The next time Zeren opened his eyes, it took him a few blinks to comprehend his current position. He faintly remembered feeling terribly intoxicated, throwing up in the toilet beside him, was that how he ended up here?  
  
The booming bass from the band was no longer felt, as well as the thundering screams from the fans. What time was it? The band probably just finished, Zeren frowned, he came all the way here for nothing.   
  
Reaching for his phone to check what time it was and to tell Yanchen what had happened, he found his back pockets empty.   
  
Both his phone and wallet were gone.   
  
In the moment of sudden panic, Zeren stood up abruptly, clonking his head painfully on the stall door, amplifying his persistent headache. A string of curses fell out as he crouched back down on the floor.   
  
What is he going to do? Without a phone, cash and a transport card, how would he find his way home? Would he be stranded in this dingy club, in an unfamiliar neighbourhood forever? How-   
  
A faint knock on his stall door snapped Zeren out from his internal conflict.   
  
"Uhh, are you okay in there?"   
  
Zeren froze in his position. He'd know that voice anywhere.   
  
Scrambling to his feet to unlock the stall door, he came face to face with none other than the band's vocalist and guitarist, Tom.   
  
Tom's expression distorted into a mixture of surprise and disgust. "Looks like you're not okay."   
  
Zeren sighed and buried his face into his arms. So much for making a good first impression.   
  
"How terrible do I look?"   
  
"You look like you are on the brink of death," Zeren looked up and saw that Tom was now looking worriedly at him, "what happened?"   
  
"I don't know... I came here, drank my drink, started feeling queasy, threw up and the next thing I know I've been robbed," Zeren tried to stop his voice from shaking, "how am I going to get home?"   
  
"I think your drink got spiked," Tom offered leaning against the stall partition. "I'll give you some cash to get yourself home."   
  
Zeren stared blankly at his kind offer. "I don't know how to get home."   
  
"Well then, I guess you going home is out of the question," Tom ran a hand through his still gelled-up hair, "I'm not letting you get lost on the streets at 3AM."   
  
"Three AM??" Zeren repeated, baffled. "I was out for a whole... 5 hours. Jesus."   
  
Tom seemed to think silently for awhile before suggesting nervously, "um... I don't mean to sound creepy or anything, but would you like to spend the night at my house? I mean, it's only a five minute drive from here..."   
  
Tom, his favourite vocalist and guitarist from the band he's been liking for years, is asking him if he wants to stay over at his house?   
  
"Is this a sleepover invitation?" Was all Zeren's sleepy, woozy and panicked mind managed to make out.   
  
"If you want to see it that way, I guess," Tom chuckled, "I'm taking that as a yes?"   
  
Without giving Zeren another second to react, Tom turned around and walked out of the bathroom, signalling to Zeren to follow him. The smaller boy complied and found himself in an unfamiliar but comforting car several minutes later.   
  
"Weren't you supposed to end hours ago? Why are you still here at 3AM?" Zeren sunk in the soft, fragrant seats of Tom's car.   
  
"We were here drinking with the other performers. Or rather, they drank and I watched," he replied. So it was a special event. Yanchen would be upset.

Zeren turned to see Tom driving with only one hand on the wheel and the other on his lap, tapping to the rhythm of the soft music filling the car.

If that was an effort to make Zeren think he looked incredibly cool, it was working.

"Anyway, what's your name?" Tom broke the awkward silence, "it's about time I got to know you. I've seen you at almost all of our performances."

"Y-You've seen me?" Zeren was caught off-guard.

"Uh, yes? I open my eyes and look at the audience too, if you didn't realise. I also know you have a friend who looks like he wants to dick Theo down," Tom smiled slightly at Zeren's reaction.

"I'm Zeren," he replied bashfully, "my friend is Yanchen. Is he that obvious?"

Tom smirked in response, revealing dimples that Zeren never knew existed. "I'm Wenjun. I'd prefer it if you call me that."

"Isn't your name Tom?" Zeren blurted out before realising a second later how stupid that sounded.

"Tom's my stage name, idiot," he rolled his eyes as he pulled into the carpark of his apartment.

Stepping into an unfamiliar apartment, Zeren was amazed at how his expectations of Wenjun's living space differed from the reality. Instead of a plain, monochrome environment, most of his stuff were pastel-coloured and cute, amplifying the juxtaposition of Wenjun's dark job and the sight currently in front of Zeren.

"You can shower first. There should be towels and everything in there already," Wenjun explained and walked towards the kitchen.

When the lukewarm water gushed out of the shower head and bathed Zeren's body in warmth, he finally had time to think about what had just happened. Would Yanchen believe him if he told him? Would he be jealous that Zeren got noticed by Tom and Theo didn't notice him?

It would be better to keep his mouth shut, Zeren concluded as he stepped out of the shower, dried his body and changed back into his flithy clothes.

He sat around awkwardly while waiting for Wenjun to emerge from the shower, keeping himself occupied by looking at the minimal furniture and decorations Wenjun kept around his house.

If Zeren thought he couldn't find any more differences between the Tom he knew and the Wenjun that was currently stepping out of the bathroom with his fringe still dripping with water, he was wrong.

Now that his heavy makeup had been erased, the Wenjun that was walking towards him to sit beside him on the sofa didn't seem like a rock star at all. Especially since a pink, oversized hoodie replaced his black, tight-fitting stage clothes, making him look like a giant teddy bear.

"You can sleep on my bed tonight. I'll sleep here," Wenjun's voice became soft and gentle unlike the loud and powerful voice he used on stage. His hair was different as well, soft and fluffy from being dried instead of the gelled-up style he was used to.

"No, I'll sleep here. It's your house, I can't steal your bed from you," Zeren quickly looked away, afraid that his cheeks might be heating up because of how nice Wenjun was being to someone he had just met an hour ago.

Wenjun's stare on Zeren remained even as the latter arranged the pillows on the sofa, not looking the least bit convinced.

"I swear I'll be fine, as it is I feel bad enough taking up unnecessary space in your house," Zeren pleaded and Wenjun nodded, giving in.

"Okay. I'll drive you home tomorrow. Goodnight, Zeren," Wenjun patted Zeren's knee and retreated into his room for the night.

 

* * *

 

Zeren spared Yanchen the details of that nights' happenings and settled with a _'I didn't feel well that night, so I didn't go'_. After all, they lived separately; Yanchen wouldn't know that he didn't come back home that night.

And if he did notice that Zeren had gotten a new phone and wallet the next day, he didn't say anything about it.

A week later, they found themselves back at their usual club, the one where the band performed most often. The concert went as amazing as usual, and when it ended, Zeren was hit with the sudden need to go up to Wenjun and thank him again.

"Zeren! Let's go grab some food now, I'm hungry," Yanchen clung to him after the concert.

"Sorry Yanchen, I have to go talk to Wenjun," Zeren slowly pried Yanchen's fingers off his arm, "I'll eat with you another day?"

"Who's Wenjun?" He asked, making Zeren suddenly realise his slip-up. Right, Yanchen didn't know Tom's real name was Wenjun.

"Oh, uh... He's an old friend. I saw him just now and I wanted to catch up with him," Zeren smiled nervously, "I'm sorry."

Zeren waved to his friend one last time before slipping behind the stage into the waiting area. He saw Wenjun talking to Theo and Justin, tidying up their instruments after they took off their heavy jackets.

"Wenjun," Zeren whispered, not wanting to create a commotion. To his luck, Wenjun excused himself from his bandmates and walked over to him.

"Zeren!" He smiled excitedly upon seeing the other boy, but his grin quickly turned upside down into a worried frown. "Is everything okay? Do you feel queasy? Did someone spike your drink again? Where's your friend? I saw him with you just now."

Zeren shook his head, suppressing a grin. "No, nothing happened to me this time, don't worry. I told Yanchen to go off first because I wanted to thank you again for last week."

Wenjun's eyebrows raised in surprise, before he looked at the ground and chuckled. "It's nothing, really. It was the least I could do, you don't have to thank me."

"Uh, I was wondering..." Zeren started but his sentence drifted off. Wenjun's gaze on him returned, encouraging him to go on.

"Are you free right now? I could treat you to supper as a thank you for last week," Zeren said meekly.

Wenjun looked genuinely surprised for a moment, before a smirk spread out on his face and his dimples making another appearance.

"Are you asking me out on a date?"

Zeren choked on his own spit at the question, feeling his ears burn.

Not giving Zeren a chance to reply, he returned back behind the stage. After some indecipherable chatters, Wenjun joined Zeren at the back exit of the club, his bag and jacket slung over his shoulder.

When Wenjun even opened the door of the passenger seat for him and gave him a cocky smirk, Zeren knew he was positively crazy in love for him.

"Where are we going?" Wenjun was driving with one hand again. He was also driving Zeren even crazier.

"Uh, you're the one behind the wheel, I think you should be the one deciding," Zeren muttered nervously, "I don't have any preferences. But I'm treating you."

Zeren silently prayed to himself that Wenjun wasn't thinking of a high class candlelight dinner when the smirk on his face grew.

"You wanna watch a movie?" He said after a moment of silence.

"Uhh... okay?" Zeren replied, unsure of what Wenjun was thinking about.

"Perfect. I know exactly where we're going," Wenjun stepped on the accelerator and they zoomed along the empty streets of the night.

 

* * *

 

Zeren could see the empty streetlight-illuminated roads slowly grow in population, and before he knew it, Wenjun was steering the car into a brightly-lit carpark, filled with cars, people, foodtrucks and a huge movie screen.

A drive-in theatre, Zeren realised. These things still exist?

Wenjun parked his car in an empty lot at the far corner. He got up to open the boot of his car all the way open, and grabbed two cushions from his carseats and arranged them side by side.

"You're treating right?" Wenjun turned to Zeren. With the glare from the gigantic movie screen shining light onto Wenjun's side profile, casting a shadow on the other side, highlighting all the little bumps and imperfections on his face, Zeren couldn't bring himself to look away from the beautiful sight.

"Follow me, I know all the good food here," the cocky smirk returned, making the smaller feel light-headed. Wenjun grabbed Zeren's wrist and dragged him to the numerous foodtrucks emitting a wonderful smell.

The delicious-smelling, colourfully-decorated foodtruck tour seemed like a blur to Zeren when he was more focused on how Wenjun never released his grip on his wrist. When they walked through a huge crowd, Zeren felt his grip tightening, as if he was afraid that he'd lose Zeren in the swarm of people.

They found their way back to the car just as the movie was starting, with paper cartons of truffle fries, burgers, churros and a milk tea each.

Zeren found it hard to concentrate on the random romcom movie that was being played with Wenjun's shoulder constantly brushing against his. As cliche as it sounds, they even reached for the same fry at once and exchanged a milisecond awkward glance before letting it go.

When the movie finally ended, Zeren found out that all he was left with were empty food cartons, a mind full of thoughts about Wenjun and no idea on what the movie was about. He was very screwed.

"Thank you, Zeren," Wenjun sipped on the remains of his drink and gave him a sweet smile, "I had fun."

"No, thank you. You're the one who brought me here right?" Zeren gathered the empty wrappers in his arms and threw them in a nearby dustbin.

"But you treated. Was it too expensive? I know you're still broke from last week, so I didn't want to bring you to somewhere costly..."

Zeren froze in his spot. Wenjun brought him here because he thought eating at a restaurant and then going to a movie was too expensive for him?

His heart softened as he saw Wenjun dusting the crumbs off the cushions and throwing them back into the car. He was being too nice to him.

"Zeren! Why are you just standing there?" Wenjun called from the driver's seat, "come in, I'll drive you home."

"Thanks for asking me out again, Zeren," the taller abruptly said in the middle of their journey, "I had fun on our date. I hope we can do this again."

Zeren wasn't sure if his 1AM sleepy mind was playing tricks on him when he saw Wenjun take his eyes off the road for a second to blatantly wink at him.

As if nothing happened, Wenjun turned up the volume of the calm R&B music and tapped his hand on the steering wheel to the rhythm.

Yup, it was definitely his mind playing tricks, Zeren thought as he looked out of the window to conceal his burning cheeks.

 

* * *

 

It became a weekly routine.

Zeren would find a way to slip away from Yanchen and go for a midnight drive with Wenjun; sometimes to eat, sometime to watch a movie, sometimes just to enjoy each other's company.

Were those considered as dates? Zeren was never sure. But Wenjun always referred their midnight escapes to it.

"I had fun on our date. I hope we can do this again" was always accompanied by a wink when Wenjun dropped Zeren off at his place. On the night that Wenjun decided to drink and drive, Zeren received a bonus kiss on the cheek.

He wondered what that meant. But he never brought it up again.

It was just another night at the club; there was another special event going on, so the venue was more crowded than usual. Yanchen stayed with him throughout their performance, until another band took their place and he muttered that he was going to the bathroom before he quickly slipped away from the crowd.

Zeren decided there was no point in watching the concert anymore, so he made his way to the bar and ordered himself a drink, remembering to carefully guard it this time.

But apparently Zeren just looked like an easy target to everyone.

"Hey pretty boy," a middle-aged man abruptly came up to him and sat on the stool beside him, inching closer every second.

Zeren sat still like a statue, too afraid to say or do anything.

"Are you free tonight? We're gonna have some fun~" By now, the creepy guy's shoulders were pressed against his. Zeren continued to not move.

"Scared? Don't worry baby, I won't do anything to hurt you," he was whispering in his ear now, and his breath smelled like alcohol. Clearly he was drunk over the top.

The man's hands started gliding along his thighs, still whispering dirty messages into his ears. Although Zeren was clearly disgusted, all he could do was to dart his panicked pupils around as a silent cry for help.

_'Wenjun'_ was all Zeren could think about when the man advanced into leaving sloppy kisses on his face. Whatever this creep was going to do to him made burning, acidic bile rise up his throat, but he was too defenceless to put a stop to it.

When the man got on his feet to pull Zeren off to somewhere, he was sure that would be the end of him-

-Until the man toppled to the ground with an anguished groan and a figure stood towering over Zeren, radiating pure anger.

Oh. Wenjun.

It all happened too fast. The guy collapsing to the ground, clutching his jaw. Wenjun grabbing his arm so hard, leaving fingernail prints. Zeren getting dragged to the back exit of the club. Wenjun slamming him against the hard concrete, trapping Zeren's body between his and the wall.

"Uh... hi?" Zeren dared to open his mouth first. He looked up and saw that there was a literal flame in Wenjun's eyes.

Wrong move.

"You let him do that to you?" He spoke with such force that specks of saliva flew out of his mouth, splattering onto Zeren's face.

"I... I didn't mean t-"

"YOU DIDN'T MEAN TO?" Wenjun's sudden volume increase shocked Zeren into keeping his mouth shut.

"Ding Zeren. That guy, literally had his WHOLE BODY on you, and you didn't tell him to stop? What are you, dumb?" He breathed hard, and the rapid rise and fall of his chest made Zeren realise how much trouble he was in.

"This is EXACTLY how you got your drink spiked! You're too vulnerable, such an easy target: people can close their eyes and still get your phone, your wallet AND your virginity in their hands!" He yelled into Zeren's face, even slamming the base of his palms on the wall.

"I'm sorry..." he squeaked, afraid to look at Wenjun in the eye.

"You, look up," Wenjun grabbed his chin and lifted it up. "what are YOU apologising to ME for? Shouldn't you be apologising to YOURSELF? Do you know what makes you if you let yourself get dragged away by that man? A SLUT."

Zeren was trembling by now; the Wenjun that was shouting at him was the same Wenjun on stage, not the Wenjun that he had been going on dates with the past few months.

"Why are you even alone anyway? Where's your friend? God, the next time I see him I'm going to punch a hole through his face, how could he leave you alone like this?" Wenjun curled his hand into a fist and punched the concrete right beside Zeren's face, making him almost shit himself.

"He told me he was going to the bathroom..."

At that instant, the back exit door flew open and two boys making out heavily tumbled out.

Yanchen and Theo.

The four of them exchanged panicked glances before Theo pulled Yanchen back into the club and it was as if nothing happened.

"You're lucky your friend was with my bandmate, if not his head would have been concaved in his neck by now," Wenjun cracked his knuckles.

Zeren looked down and bit his lip nervously. He'd better get Wenjun to calm down before letting Yanchen in his sight again.

"Anyway, I'm not done," Wenjun sandwiched Zeren's body back again when he saw the smaller beginning to relax, even closer than before.

"Can't you just have shouted for help? Hell, Zeren, that place was FULL of people, all minding their own businesses, unaware if YOU don't say anything. Can't you just have pushed him away and ran out if you couldn't shout? What would happened if I didn't happen to look for you? HUH?" He continued shouting, slamming his fists on the wall, still breathing heavily.

Zeren remembered the disgusting trails the creep left on him- the touches on his thighs, the kisses on his face, the whispers in his ear -and turned to the side and vomited out the contents of his stomach into the gutter beside him.

His head was spinning. The creepy man's gross actions. Wenjun yelling angrily at him. Yanchen abandoning him to make out with Theo. Putting his hands on his knees, he continued barfing, his vision clouding up with tears.

When he was finally done, he continued standing there, his throat still on fire, his vision still blurry, his breathing becoming unsteady, until he felt a hand on his back.

"Zeren. Look at me."

His voice was no longer loud and angry unlike minutes ago, instead it reverted back into the calming, soothing voice he got used to. Zeren stood up straight and listened to Wenjun, before he felt himself being pulled into a warm embrace.

Suddenly being engulfed in Wenjun's warmth and fragrance, something cracked in Zeren and he broke down. The large hand that came to rub on his back seemed comforting, holding him tight as he emptied his tears on Wenjun's shoulder.

"I... I was so, so scared, Wenjun," Zeren sobbed, arms snaking around Wenjun's waist to prevent him from leaving.

The taller said nothing but to gently shush him, still rubbing his back with one hand and stroking his hair with the other. After what seemed like an eternity, Zeren's sobs settled into sniffles and he rested his forehead on Wenjun's tear-soaked shoulder.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you," Wenjun gently whispered into his ear and unlike the creepy man who had done the same thing, this sent shivers down Zeren's spine.

"I was just really worried," he sighed, his right hand never stopped smoothing down Zeren's hair, "I couldn't imagine what that shithead would have done to you. I just got really angry when I saw him touch you like that. I didn't mean to scare you, I'm sorry, baby."

Zeren nodded, his head still on Wenjun's chest.

"What's going to happen to you if I wasn't here?" He sighed again, his muscular arms coming down on both of Zeren's shoulders, pulling him closer. "Who would've saved you in the toilet? Who would've given that idiot what he deserves?"

The smaller boy closed his eyes, leaning his head on one of Wenjun's big arms, letting Wenjun's soft voice calm him down.

"I don't want anything to happen to you, Zeren," he lifted Zeren's chin up, "so it looks like I'll have to always be there to protect you."

Without warning, Wenjun leaned down to gently press his lips onto Zeren, startling the smaller boy. Under Wenjun's gentleness, Zeren quickly relaxed and closed his eyes, letting Wenjun take control of the kiss.

Wenjun's lips were as soft as they looked, moving slowly against Zeren's plump ones. Zeren brought his arms up to wrap around Wenjun's neck, enjoying their private moment.

It all ended too fast, Zeren thought as Wenjun pulled away for air. The two of them stared into each other's eyes for a good five seconds, before Wenjun broke the silence with a giggle.

"What?" Zeren pouted, unable to find anything funny about the proximity they were in.

"You taste like vomit, and you look like a demon with your eyes all red from crying," Wenjun chuckled, "but guess what? You're still so attractive, I don't know how."

Zeren scowled, hitting Wenjun's chest lightly.

"Does this mean we're dating?" Zeren asked.

"Were we not already?" Wenjun giggled again, "then what were all those night-outs together?"

Zeren felt like fainting.

"I'll be a proper boyfriend now, protecting you and punching dicks that get in your way. And you can be a proper boyfriend by making sure you don't get yourself into trouble." Wenjun's hand slipped into Zeren's, "come on, let's get you cleaned up so I can continue kissing you."

With a peck on his forehead, Wenjun pulled Zeren back into the club where Wenjun picked his bag and jacket up. They passed by the creep who was busy shouting at the bartender while holding an icepack to his jaw, and he gave them the finger when he saw Zeren again.

Wenjun squeezed Zeren's hand reassuringly. Looking up, it was as if Wenjun's dark orbs were speaking _'it's okay, I'm here'_ to him, accompanied by a little smile.

And he was right. With Wenjun by his side to protect him, Zeren wouldn't need to fear a single thing in the world.

**Author's Note:**

> i hate wenjun for having such an ugly ass english name 
> 
> who volunteers to write a zyc/zzt sequel ill give u a cookie
> 
> follow [my twt](https://twitter.com/biwenjunhui) for ugly tweets about bwj thank u for reading my fellow junren enthusiasts i love yall


End file.
